Kill Shot

“Do it again, Pierce.”

Carolyn took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and fired.

That voice crackled over the intercom. “With your eyes open, brat. You need to look at your target when you fire.”

Another voice broke in. “Easy, easy, she hit the bulls-eye.”

“That’s not the point,” the first voice barked. “Cadet Pierce, eyes on the target at all times, understood?”

Carolyn opened her eyes and stared at the row of targets laid out before her. Each of them was marked with specific red sections - kill shots. She’d become a sufficient marksman; now she had to learn to kill first, ask questions later.

“Again,” the voice commanded.

Carolyn closed her eyes and emptied her clip into the closest target. She could hit a heart from two hundred yards with her eyes closed, but she was tired of this. Before she could open her eyes, someone plucked the gun out of her hand, and hands clamped around her upper arms. She reacted smoothly, instinctually, sliding into the series of motions drilled into her by daily repetition, and began taking down her opponents one by one. But there were too many of them, and they were bigger than her.

When she finally managed to get herself uncuffed and the blindfold untied, she was in a four by six cement cell with only a single light. Any moment, someone would shut it off.

Then she’d have to wait until her body was desperate enough for food to make that kill shot.

(251 words)